Regaining Lost Passion
by Kaci-Kuryido
Summary: 2 years on from Season 1, the DigiDestined are recalled. Their new adversary is swift and cunning, and they can't get any information, but does even the new enemy know what's going on?
1. Default Chapter

Chapter 1

"Tai! You'll never guess wha- oh, hello Mrs. Kamiya."  
A slightly embarrassed Koushiro 'Izzy' Izumi chided himself on his hastiness. Who knows what could have slipped out?  
_ "Oh, hi Izzy. Hold on, I'll get him. **TAI! **Izzy's on the phone! Seems to be something important!"  
  
_ A teenage boy with a huge mop of tousled brown hair came out of his room. His younger sister followed close behind him. Taichi 'Tai' Kamiya and his sister Hikari (or 'Kari') had been talking about their favourite subject; their adventures in the Digital World a couple of years before, and their Digimon partners, Agumon and Gatomon. But this was a subject they could only talk about in secret, between themselves and the other DigiDestined. Tai took the handset from his mum, and Kari listened in.

"Hey Izzy, what's up?"  
"You'll never believe this but Gennai-"   
** "GENNAI!" "GENNAI!"**  
"-just sent us an e-mail. He wants us all to meet up at my house. He'll speak to us then."  
"You're right. I don't believe you."   
"So when do we come over, Izzy? Now?"  
"That would be the most preferable scenario."  
"Ya-wha?"  
"He said yes. Come on Tai, let's go!"  
"Well why didn't he say that", said Tai as he put down the receiver, _"instead of using all those long words? Not everyone's a genius like him."_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So, we all here?" a blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy asked Izzy as he walked through the door of the Izumi residence with a small, similar-looking boy with him. _"Sorry we're late. Had to pick T.K. up from the station"_. Yamato 'Matt' Ishida and his younger brother Takeru Takaishi lived separately since their parents divorced several years before. T.K. now lived across town.  
_ "And get candy." _piped up T.K._  
"That's OK. Yeah, we're all here." _ All three walked into Izzy's bedroom where the other DigiDestined, Sora Takenouchi, Mimi Tachikawa, & Jyou 'Joe' Kido were waiting with Tai and Kari.   
_ "Right, we're all here. So what's all the commotion, Izzy?"_ Sora voiced what everyone was thinking.  
_ "Well, like I said on the phone, Gennai contacted me a little while ago. He said he'd contact us again when we're all together."  
_No sooner were the words out of his mouth than Gennai appeared on Izzy's computer screen.  
_ "Greetings, DigiDestined. Good to see you all again. I'm only regretting we must meet again like this. The Digital World needs your help once more."  
"Can you give us a heads up on the enemy this time, Gennai?"_ asked Joe.   
_ "I'm afraid I have no information at this moment in time. I was captured by him, but managed to escape. Unfortunately I found no information on the new enemy. Whoever this is knows how to keep themselves to themselves. He's a very slippery character."   
"You mean he's a coward. Well, we'll show him if he messes up the Digital World, he answers to us. Right guys?_ When Tai got himself fired up, it was hard not to follow his example.  
_**"Yeah! We'll show him whose boss! Let's get him! We'll get to see our Digimon again too!"   
**__ "Well now that that's settled, I have a question. How do we get to the Digital World?" _This slightly out-of-character, insightful statement from Mimi stopped the general kerfuffle of noise exploding from Izzy's room. In an instant they all remembered the last time. Gennai had said that the gate between both worlds was closed.  
_"Hold your Digivices up to the computer screen. The Digital Gate has opened."_   
_"Yay, I'll see Patamon again!"_ T.K. remembered the pact the two made at the end of their last adventure. All the DigiDestined now had their Digivices at the computer. A bright light surrounded them and dragged them into the screen. Just as the light faded, Izzy's mother knocked on the door and entered with an assortment of snacks and drinks.  
_"Izzy, you there? Funny, I could've sworn I heard them a minute ago."_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Why did you let that old oaf get away?!" A cruel, evidently annoyed voice growled at the small Digimon at the voice's owner's feet.  
"_I'm sorry, Your Grace, but..."__**  
"I DON'T WANT EXCUSES!"**_ The voice rose to an angry snarl._  
"I'm sorry."_ The winged Digimon hung its golden head respectfully. The voice's owner sighed and started to pace the room.  
_"Well, what's done is done. We must simply make the best use of a bad hand. This turn of events has upset the plan and perhaps pushed it back somewhat, but hopefully we can turn it into an advantageous situation rather an unlucky screw-up. But that doddering idiot will call for back up, the DigiDestined no doubt. We must prepare for their arrival. Go, summon the troops and brief them on the situation. I will personally give them further orders when the time comes."   
"Hkum hai!" _(It is an order!) The Digimon bowed and left what appeared to be a planning room or study. The other presence in the room moodily slumped into a chair, lifted its right arm and a computer appeared from a manacle stretching almost to the elbow. The only sound was the faint tapping of buttons and one statement-  
_"Yes, we will be ready for them."_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

__

"WOOOOOAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH! OOOOFF!" It was always a rough journey to the Digital World, and this time was no exception.

"Are we there yet?"  
"I think so, well, we're on solid ground anyway."  
"We'd better find Gennai, see what's happening."   
"I wonder where our Digimon are." Her wondering was soon answered, for after walking for about 10 minutes, a metallic voice was heard several feet above them.   
_**"IZZY!"  
**__** "TENTOMON!"**_ Izzy was extremely pleased to spot his red, robotic, mosquito-like partner swooping down to greet him. After a quick hug, Tentomon led them to the lake underneath which Gennai's house was located. All the other Digimon had gathered there and an extremely happy reunion was had by all the partners- Tai and Agumon, Matt and Gabumon, Sora and Biyomon, Mimi and Palmon (rather emotional), Joe and Gammon, T.K. and Patamon, and Kari and Gatomon. After all the catch-up had been done, and a quick meal, they all gathered around the fireplace to discuss the situation (a bit of a squeeze with 17 people and Digimon).  
_ "Right, so, does anyone know **anything** about this new guy?"  
"Our digivolving's gone. We can't digivolve to Ultimate at all."_ Gabumon started the conversation on a very serious note.  
_"But I thought the energy for you to digivolve to Ultimate came from us and the Crests."  
"Certainly at first,"_ put in Gennai, _ "but once you had actually done it a few times, and especially since you fully realized that the power came from within, the Digimon were able to do it without you actually being there."  
"Until this guy showed up," _continued Gabumon._ "We sometimes digivolved to Ultimate to cross big distances or solve problems. Suddenly you can't digivolve and you don't know who to trust. We've kept in a very tight group since the new evil appeared. Made sure no outsiders-"_   
_ "Outsiders'?  
"Digimon not in our immediate circle. We think that some Digimon have become evil, but there's no obvious sign that they are evil. It seems a few Digimon have been persuading others to join the cause. There's been a few surprises as to who's joined."  
"Like who?"  
"Some of our friends from last time, as well as some very powerful Digimon. Andromon, Monzaemon, Leomon, the list gets bigger every time we look."_   
_"Wow, I wonder who's doing this, and how."_   
_"But the weird thing is, the Digimon disappear for a few weeks, but they always come back like nothing's happened and simply go about their business as usual."  
__"It sounds as if whoever has them under their control is waiting for something to happen."  
"I think you're right Izzy, or maybe they're spies gathering info for this most heinous villain."  
"You've been watching those James Bond movies again, haven't you?  
"No_..._"  
__"You so have."  
"Matt, call her off."  
"Leave him alone, Sora. Leave him to his little childish fantasies."_ Matt smiled and put an affectionate arm around Sora. The two had become an item some months before.   
_"Hey, a guy can dream, you know. You're the one that said you wanted to be an astronaut."  
"When I was 6!"  
"Will you please stop bickering? There's more important things to worry about!"  
"You tell them Joe."  
"Joe's right, we won't stop this new evil taking over if we just sit around."_ Gomamon turned around from staring through the window at the fish in the lake.  
_"All right, it's settled then. From tomorrow, the DigiDestined are back in business!"  
**"Yeah!"**_

So, what's to be expected for the DigiDestined this time? And who is this new enemy, and what in the Digiworld is up? Just read Chapter 2, then!


	2. Chapter 2 The First Sighting

Chapter 2

Recap: Tai and the others have returned to the Digital World, where a new threat is causing worry, but no-one seems to know anything about this new character, who they are or what they're up to. Meanwhile, it has already known of their imminent arrival, and prepares for war...

"Alright, where do you think we should start?  
"Probably in a town. Where's the nearest?"  
"The nearest population of Digimon is...", Izzy tapped for a few seconds on his computer, _ "near Mount Miharashi. Sounds familiar, doesn't it?"  
"Yeah, the Yokomon village. I remember." _Biyomon had first digivolved to Birdramon while battling Meramon there.  
_ "Good. Someone will be willing to answer our questions there."  
"How long will it take to get there Izzy?"  
"Approximately 1 and a half to 2 hours straight, longer if we include breaks."  
"OOH! Do we always have to walk?!"  
"Mimi, if you have a better answer, we'd love to hear it." _That put Mimi in her place until they'd been walking for about half an hour.   
_ "It's not the walking I mind, it's the boredom. At least in the mall there's things to look at, and you can stop for something to eat and you're not always in a hurry."  
** "MIMI!"  
** "Sorry, are we there yet?"  
** "NO!"**_

Eventually they arrived at the village, which really hadn't changed much since the last time. Yokomon were crawling all over the place, but as soon as the group were spotted, the Yokomon surrounded the DigiDestined, especially Biyomon. After all the formalities had been taken care of-  
_ "OK guys, the reason we're here is to ask some questions. We've heard that there's a new jerk in town, but no other info apart from that, and we were wondering if you guys knew anything."  
_ A silence came over the Yokomon as they seemed uneasy to talk. Eventually one of them, who appeared to be a spokesmon, bounced forward.  
_ "We really haven't seen much, just heard rumours. You should talk to Meramon perhaps, he might know something."  
__ "Alright then, you heard the mon, it's up to Mount Miharashi."_ They started to walk towards the foot of the mountain when Sora noticed Mimi and Palmon weren't following.  
_ "Not coming, you two?"  
"No, I'm not."  
"I would, but I'll stay with Mimi."  
"Won't you be bored?"  
"No. You guys go on, we'll stay here. Maybe... we can get some more info out of the Yokomon."  
"Suit yourself." _Sora ran to catch up with the others.   
_ "What's with her?"  
"Trying to get some more out of the Yokomon."  
"Yeah... that's likely." _Matt just couldn't hide the sarcasm in his voice.  
_ "Well, nothing we can do about it. She'll be fine with Palmon if there's any trouble."  
_Meanwhile, a Flymon circled around the village in the sky above, and from its back, someone was watching...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Aha, the flower power girl's decided to stay behind, eh?"  
"It would seem so, Your Grace." another voice came from the first speaker's shoulder.  
_ "Hmm, seeing as she likes plants and she's alone, I think I'll send her a tree to give her a hug." _ the first voice chuckled. Then it opened up the manacle on the left arm and seemed to speak into a com device.  
_ "Vrksasmon, go to the Yokomon village at Mount Miharashi, and deal with the troublemaker you find there with her partner."_ A woody voice came back over the com.  
_ "At once, Your Grace. Will that be all?"  
__ "Until I issue further orders. You know what to do until then."_ The com device was switched off.  
_ "I thought you wanted a worthy opponent to battle."   
__ "Still do."  
"Then why are you sending Vrksasmon to fight 1 DigiDestined who's on her own?"  
"This is an opportunity too good to miss, my friend. I've seen them do battle before. Their teamwork is both efficient and powerful. If we can pick off one, even someone who is not the strongest in the group, something becomes lost from that team and they have to compensate more for that loss. The team becomes weaker as a unit because of that. It's like soccer, it's not just the quality of the players you have on your team, but your teamwork and tactics to overcome your opponent. War follows the exact same principle. Others thought the DigiDestined to be weak, and strength-wise, they were weaker, but working together gave them a strength none would have alone."  
"So this is a tactical decision?"  
"Exactly. You're getting the hang of this, my friend." _The speaker turned to the Flymon.  
_ "When you see Vrksasmon, try and see if you can go down lower without being seen. It's about time we saw some action."_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The DigiDestined (bar Mimi and Palmon) had reached the lake on top of Mount Miharashi where the fiery Meramon lived, and had started to question him on what he knew, but it seemed he knew as much solid information as they did.  
_ "I'm afraid I've not been much help to you guys. I wish I could do more, but I only get titbits of information from the bird Digimon who rest here. I've never really left this mountain since the battle against Piedmon."  
__ "Well, it was worth a try, and it's nice to see you again."  
"Thank you, and I'll ask around for more info next time."  
"You're welcome. See ya around, Meramon." _The group started to walk back down the mountain.  
_ "This is very mysterious, and very frustrating." _Izzy certainly seemed a bit annoyed at something.  
_ "What's the matter, Izzy?"  
"Izzy's just miffed coz now there's something he knows nothing about."  
"Wait a minute! I've just remembered something!" _The group turned round to Meramon._  
"I heard a Deramon saying that whenever there's been trouble recently, a Flymon has sometimes been seen in the area. I don't know if that'll be any help, but it might be something."  
__ "Cool, Meramon. Thanks a lot."  
"Uh, guys, I don't know about you, but there's a Flymon over there, hovering above the village." _ Everyone looked at each other.   
_** "MIMI!"**_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mimi had been trying to talk more to the Yokomon about the recent troubles, but even turning the charm full on couldn't get much out of them, so she decided to dip her feet in the lake. Palmon was as welcome as her for the cold water on her feet (or in Palmon's case, roots). Suddenly there was chaos all around them, Yokomon flying in all directions, houses being demolished, and a huge tree -like Digimon running towards them.

__

"OH NO!! NIGHTMARE!!"  
"Palmon, digivolve to... TOGEMON!"  
"Leave her alone, you over-sized shrub! Needle Spray!" The hard bark covering the Digimon simply repelled the cactus's primary attack.   
_** "WILLOW WHOMP!"**_ Togemon went flying as a branch extended and slammed into her. She then decided on a close-range attack.  
_ "Light-Speed Jabbing!"_ The punches came in thick and fast as Togemon desperately tried to protect Mimi. No way was this enemy getting near her. Meanwhile, in a nearby patch of forest...  
_ "Fancy getting in there while Togemon's occupied?"  
"From what I see, Vrksasmon is doing quite well on his own."  
"Sounds reasonable. No point wasting resources on what doesn't need them. We'll just sit back and enjoy the fun."_

'Fun' definitely wouldn't be the word Togemon and Mimi would have used, as Togemon was getting pummelled by Vrksasmon and was now being used as a green punching-bag. The other DigiDestined arrived just as Togemon couldn't take much more punishment, and the other Digimon lost no time in digivolving to help their friend.

"Agumon digivolve to... Greymon!"  
"Gabumon digivolve to...Garurumon!"  
"Biyomon digivolve to... Birdramon!"  
"Tentomon digivolve to... Kabuterimon!"  
"Gomamon digivolve to... Ikkakumon"  
"Patamon digivolve to... Angemon!"

Izzy quickly put up the Digimon Analyzer.

"Vrksasmon. Vegetation Virus, Ultimate Level. Attacks- Willow Whomp & Graft Saw. A tree Digimon that could easily cut most other Digimon down to size."  
"Aw, nuts. The others are here. That's that strategy down the plughole." The com device was quickly activated.  
_ "Vrksasmon, return to base."  
"As you wish."_ The DigiDestined heard the order being given.  
_ "Wonder what that's about."_ Joe pondered as Vrksasmon quickly made his exit._  
"I'm telling you, whoever this is, is a right big chicken."  
"I saw the Flymon land in the forest. Think we should go see what's there?"  
"Good idea. Let's go."  
"Uh oh, looks like we've had enough fun here for today." _As the Flymon's rider remounted, she suddenly caught a look at one of the other girls in the group._   
__ "Sora? I never noticed her when I last saw them all together. It's not like me to miss something like that."  
"Your Grace, we have to go. If we wait any longer, they'll catch us."  
"Right."_ The rider quickly snapped out and ordered the Flymon upwards. Not long after, the DigiDestined caught up to the spot only to see two figures jump off the Flymon to a nearby cliff and run off.  
_ "Well, should we go after them?"  
"Let it go. I'm sure they'll come out eventually, and we'll be ready when they do."_

So, the new threat decides to make an appearance, and appears to know Sora. What's the connection? Well, keep reading to find out!


	3. Chapter 3 Who is the Real Threat?

Chapter 3

Recap: While investigating the new threat, Mimi and Palmon are left behind, and the new threat orders Vrksasmon to attack them. But whenever the others showed up again, he is called back and the threat makes a hasty exit. On the way out, she recognises Sora, but what's the connection?

"What was that you were saying about a sora, Your Grace?"_  
"Um, doesn't matter just now, my friend, doesn't matter."  
"I think it does, you've not been yourself recently."  
"Who else could I be, Kitamon?" _Kitamon's companion smiled as they reached a cliffside at the foot of Infinity Mountain. She activated a hidden panel and part of the rock face melted away, revealing a sort of hidden complex in the mountain. The two entered the hideout and the rock reformed behind them. They went into the planning room, which had various pieces of equipment scattered around the place- a telescreen, with various parts of the Digital World being displayed; a large desk, with a laptop and a DigiWorld map on it which had been marked and drawn on in several places- stood out. The other figure threw off her coat, slumped into a chair, put her feet up on the desk and started to look through a pile of cards. The desk lamp- the only light source in the room- threw a light on the figure. 

She was a human, about 13 years old and tall for her age. Her hair was long, messy and brown with some purple streaks. She was dressed in black leather trousers and a red bra top, with walking boots. The coat she had been wearing was long, black leather. Around her neck was a pendant-type necklace resembling a Tag, but in some ways quite different. This also had eight triangle shapes sticking out, each with a Crest symbol of the DigiDestined's, and instead of her own Crest in the centre, there was a black space, radiating dark energy to the triangles. As she shuffled through the cards, Kitamon jumped onto the desk. The winged lion cub Digimon looked at the cards with some curiosity.

"Are they the Digimon stat cards you've been working on?"  
_ "Yes. I've got a few more now than previously, but I'm sure there are many still out there with abilities worthy of archiving."  
"Just remind me what exactly these are for again and how you plan to use them."  
"You should listen more closely, seeing as these are for your benefit. Let me explain. The cards are scanned through the D-Tec"_- she took her Digivice from her belt- _"see the space to slash cards through? The card is programmed to give you more ability, really. It can boost what you already have, like speed, or it can give you the abilities or attacks of another Digimon. Since you can only digivolve to Champion like the DigiDestined's Digimon, these will give us an extra advantage. I'm not saying you're a weak Digimon, but we should get any advantage any way we can, seeing as there are 8 of them."  
"But you designed the Asanas to be Ultimate level, and there are 12 of them, never mind all the other Digimon you managed to recruit."_   
_"I did, but like I said earlier, those guys always tend to pull something out of the hat at the last minute. We have to be careful. The records of the Digiworld show that most of the Digimon they battled against before had armies of Digimon at their disposal, and the DigiDestined are still here."  
"I see your point, Your Grace."  
"Kitamon, we've been friends for a good while now. The Digimon under my control show me respect as their commander, but I consider you my equal. There's no need for you to call me that. I prefer something familiar from you."  
"I just thought it was expected of me because you didn't stop the others from doing it."  
"Did I ever reprimand you for calling me by my name?"  
"No."  
"There's your answer. Now if you don't mind, I've thought of a few more cards, and there's a couple of other projects I'd like to work on. I'd like to work in private."  
"OK, see you later Kaci."_ Kitamon left the room, with Kaci now turning to her laptop, inserted a credit card-shaped disk into the CD-ROM drive and opening up a program designer. Kitamon now entered a bedroom and lay down on the rug, deep in thought.

"Kaci has changed since she came here. It's not that drastic, but then again, in some ways it seems she's a completely different person." The Digimon tried thinking back. When exactly did she start to act differently, and what actually caused it?

~~~~~~~~~~Flashback~~~~~~~~~

"Kay-Celes! Could you come into the living room please?"_  
"Wait here Kitamon." _She waited as Kaci left the room and listened in on the conversation.  
_ "Sure thing Dad, what's up?"  
"It's about work, sport. We have to go again. "  
"Oh no!"  
"I know honey, but you know, duty calls."  
"Where are we going this time?"  
"Argentina. But it'll be good fun there for you, they're mad about soccer, and you can practice your Spanish-  
"Dad, please, I don't want to move again. I thought we were staying here, you know, we were finally staying at home. I love it here, I feel like I belong somewhere. I hate this hopping to different countries all the time. Mom, tell him!"  
"I know you don't like it. It's unfortunate, but think about it, you get to see things other kids your age dream of seeing."  
"That's the thing, I want to be normal. I don't want to live out of a suitcase, waiting for the next posting. We've been here 3 years, I've made friends, I'm doing well at school, and I don't see any point in upping sticks again."  
"I'm sorry, we have no choice in the matter, your father has to go where he's posted."  
"Oh, for God's sake, forget it. This is pointless; it never counts what I say anyway."  
"Kay-Celes, you know that's not true! KAY-CELES!"_ A slammed door was her reply. The then 11-year-old tossed herself on the bed angrily. Kitamon jumped up too, anxious.  
_ "What's wrong, Kaci?"  
__"My parents say we have to move again, coz of Dad's work. We have to go to Argentina."  
"Where's that?"   
"A huge ocean away from here. I don't want to go."  
"You made **that** pretty clear."  
"I just hate moving around all the time, changing country, changing schools, and always being the new kid. More often than not I end up having to learn a whole new language."  
"Why do you guys do this?"  
"My dad works in the Army, training recruits, they go all over the place for training in different scenarios and weather conditions, and where my dad goes, we go too. Mom works for them too, in IT, developing new computer equipment and software."  
"That's too bad."  
"I thought when we came here it'd just be another temporary fixture. We'd stay for about six months and then take off again. But as we ended up staying longer, I got used to everything here again. We originally came from here, but I'm not sure if I've even lived here 5 years of my life. I've got settled, concentrated on schoolwork, and things are good here. There's tons to do, and I've made friends with Sora and the other girls on the soccer team. It's hard to leave all that behind."_

~~~~~~~~~~End Flashback~~~~~~~~~

Kitamon suddenly snapped out as the last statement was made.

"Wait a minute, so that's what a Sora is. She's a person, and she's one of the DigiDestined! This is a twist, how can she face fighting against her friend? No, she took that piece of news fairly much in her stride. Something's happened since then." She then decided that it had to have been after they came to the DigiWorld. But she didn't get far again in her thoughts, when a noise in the other room alerted her. She listened through the wall to hear what was happening. Kaci was talking to someone through her laptop, with a tone of annoyance in her voice.

"I was in the middle of something here, do you mind?"  
"How far have you got in taking care of those troublemakers?"  
"I'm still investigating effective strategies."  
"I cannot give you much time, Kay-Celes. You must make sure they are destroyed, soon."  
"What's with the big rush anyway? If you're as big a hotshot as you say, you could take care of them yourself easily and quickly."  
"When someone less powerful than me can do the job, I don't see why I should."  
"There's a term we use back home for such a case as that. It's called being a lazy scut."  
"I'll ignore your insolence for now, but if you don't deliver the DigiDestined to me, I may not be as tolerant."  
"I'll take care of it." She ended the tranmission and resumed making the cards, grumbling-  
_ "How can he expect me to do my job when I have no info whatsoever and he's always breathing down my  
neck! Some people have no patience."  
_ Kitamon took her ears away from the wall.  
_ "Kaci's working for someone, and she could be in big trouble, but how can I help her?"_

It looks like Kaci's not really the one in the driver's seat after all, but who _is _doing the driving, will it be crash and burn for Kaci, and how will the DigiDestined, especially Sora, react to this? Keep reading to find out!


	4. Chapter 4 Plan of Attack

Chapter 4

Recap: The mysterious figure that the DigiDestined seen escaping from them turns out to be a human, namely 13-year-old Kay-Celes 'Kaci' Kuryido, a former soccer team-mate of Sora's, and her Digimon accomplice Kitamon. Kaci, it seems, has been the one planning against the DigiDestined, but as Kitamon discovers, she's not really the one in charge…

"So, what's our next move?"  
"Can we get away from here, please? That big weed could come back." Mimi still hadn't quite recovered from the shock of being attacked by Vrksasmon._  
"As safe and sound as that option appears, remember as soon as all the Digimon digivolved, Vrksasmon retreated. So it would be safe to conclude that-"  
"He's a big chicken."  
"Yes, Tai, you've already said that. As I was saying, it would be safe to conclude that it wasn't meant to be a direct assault on us, just an opportunistic sneak attack."  
"Whoever this is, is certainly trying to be clever about it. I mean, they knew where we were, and that Mimi and Palmon had separated from the rest of us. It sounds like Etemon again, he had everything rigged."  
"No, Zudomon and SaberLeomon took care of him."  
"Man, if only we knew more about this creep. It's like the first time with Devimon, we didn't have a clue what was going on."  
"We didn't know **anything ** about the Digital World that time. This is worse, coz we're supposed to know what we're doing by now."  
"I hate it when this stuff happens."  
"Yeah, I wish we knew more of this situation. It certainly would help constitute some kind of plan. How can we defeat something we know nothing about?"   
"We may as well be fighting blind here."  
"We'll just have to hope something turns up we can use."  
"Atta boy, T.K."  
"You're da man!"  
"Yeah, we just gotta keep going and see if we can come up with something."_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Leomon?" Kaci looked up as the door opened._  
"Yes, Your Grace. You sent for me?"_ The mighty warrior lion, a strange possessed look in his eyes, approached Kaci, who was sitting in a chair sorting and connecting cables to her laptop._  
"I did actually. Despite the fact you have a Mega form, I have decided to make an Ultimate form, one of the Asanas, for you. Your digivolution to SaberLeomon suggests the likeliness of the experiment succeeding will increase if I use you. Are you willing to do this?"_ She sniggered to herself. Of course he would, he had to. The boss had made him submit to her will. She merely asked out of manners, a mere formality. These mighty creatures who any other time would blast her to bits if she tried ordering them around were hanging on her every word, doing what she asked with barely no question. Other Digimon, because of what she did, feared her. The sense of power and control over her own destiny, and others', could be very intoxicating. _  
"Of course."__  
"That's good. We'll begin at once. Lie down on the table there."_ She quickly finished with the wires, and attached some to Leomon. She resumed her place at the computer and started running the program she set up. The data transfer surged through every bit in Leomon. He started to glow as the digivolution took place.

"Leomon digivolve to... Kesarinmon!"  
Kesarinmon was a armored, feral, quadruped version of Leomon with much darker tendencies. The wild, bloodthirsty look in his eyes belied his slavery. Kaci pointed her D-Tec at him, and an new entry appeared.  
_"Kesarinmon, Beast Data, Ultimate Level. Attacks- Call of the Jungle, Feral Destroyer. This Digimon's only happy in the thick of battle. He's built to kill."  
"Not too bad for a first attempt, if I say so myself. Kesarinmon, return to your place."  
"When will I be able to fight, Your Grace? I need action."_ Kesarinmon was already growling and baring his teeth in frustration.  
_"Patience, Kesarinmon, is something you'll have to learn. But don't worry, as soon as I locate the DigiDestined, you'll get your chance. And get off that table, you're gonna-"  
_There was a huge crack and a splintering sound, followed by a huge thud._  
"-break it. Get out of my sight, you oversized alley-cat."_ Kaci resisted the sore temptation of kicking Kesarinmon as he left the room with his tail between his legs and almost taking the door with him on his way out. Kitamon smiled as she came out of her corner and leapt to Kaci's shoulder.

"Should have left him standing, shouldn't I?"  
"Probably. He's not the most graceful Digimon in the Digiworld, is he?"  
"Perhaps not Kitamon, but hopefully he can carry out what I have planned for him. He's certainly enthusiatic about it, and that's what I like to see. I don't like slackers. Talking of which, I have more work to do. No rest for the wicked, is there?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, the DigiDestined had moved on, in case anyone attacked the Yokomon village again while they were there. It had suffered badly in the attack, so they felt they should leave for the Yokomons' safety. Trekking through the desert was hot, thirsty work, but they didn't suffer as much as they should, as they'd brought as much water as they could carry from the lake. At every opportunity that day they spoke to any Digimon they came across, but unfortunately either most ran away at the subject of trouble, or could turn up few clues. It was a very tired and bored group of DigiDestined who set up camp that night. 

"Nothing, nothing, **NOTHING!**" Tai kicked an empty water bottle in frustration. _ "What is with this guy? He hardly ever makes an appearance, but they just freak at the mention of him. What kind of creepazoid is he?"  
"It's certainly intriguing how he manages to do it. Obviously he uses his mystery as part of his strategy, that means they never know when and where he'll strike next. The Flymon we saw is always spotted too late. But something about this just doesn't add up."  
"What's that, Izzy?"  
"That if this threat is as lethal as people fear, he certainly would make his presence more well known. Let them know who's in charge."  
"But look around, you only had to see some of the reactions we got today. He doesn't need to. They say he has spies everywhere. It's like something out of Big Brother."  
_Suddenly T.K. and Kari, who'd been whispering the last couple of minutes, interrupted the conversation.  
_"Can we ask a question?"  
"Sure, T.K., what is it?"  
"What's this guy's name, anyway?"  
_ The whole camp grew quiet. There was some quiet thought as everyone looked back, trying to remember any mention of the threat's name. They all drew blanks.  
_"Uh... that's a good question."  
"You got me."  
"No idea."  
"Well, that **is **interesting, how come no-one realized that before?"  
"It just never seemed important somehow."  
"Of course it's not that important, the important thing is that we **kick his butt!**"  
"That may be true Tai, but we need a plan to... kick his butt, and for that, we need more information."  
"And if we don't have that-"  
"We're lost in a mall with no signs, no security guards and no intercom?"  
"Not the best analogy, Mimi, but I think I see where you're going."  
"Good, 'coz I don't." _ Everyone groaned.  
_ "Oh, Mimi!"_ Palmon shook her leafy head in despair at her ditzy partner.  
_"Well, I think we should go to sleep and get a fresh start in the morning. It seems like it'll be a long day tomorrow."  
"You're right."  
"According to you, she's always right."  
"Well, why not?"  
"I'm just saying-"  
"I think someone's jealous!"_ Matt tried to tease his best friend into getting all worked up. It was one of the funniest things to watch. But he knew it could be a risky pastime. Tip Tai too far and it could get ugly.  
_"I'm not jealous!"  
"Come on, admit it!"  
"What's there to admit to? **I'M NOT JEALOUS!"  
**"Oh will you guys please stop it? There's more important stuff to worry about, and Sora's going as red as her gloves."_ One glance is Sora's direction proved this to be true. Both boys immediately stopped._  
"Alright gang, lights out!"  
"But there's no lights, Tai."  
"You know what I mean."_

A long while after this, Sora was still awake, thinking about the argument. She never liked it when Matt and Tai fought, even in fun, and especially when she somehow (directly or otherwise) got into the argument. They were probably her best friends out of the DigiDestined, so to have them fighting upset her. But it was over and done with, she was probably worrying over nothing. She turned over to get some sleep. Not very far away, hidden in the undergrowth, someone/ something was watching...

"SSssooo, theesth are the DigiDessstined. Very interessting, who'd havth realissed they'd causth sssooo much trouble for sso many of the Digimon before. Not to worry, Her Gracth will not be ssoo foolisth assth they. The Asssanas will conquer them and we sthall **TRIUMPHTH**!" The figure laughed to himself, slithered away a little further and opened a communicator._  
"Your Gracth?"  
_"_Bhujangmon, what have you found?_"  
_"I haf found the DigiDessstined. They are assleep. Sthall I dissposse them for you?"  
"Not yet, Bhujangmon, I have someone who also wishes to have a little fun. Remain out of sight until we arrive."  
"You are coming too, Your Gracth?"  
"I want to make sure the job's done. We can't go fouling things up, Bhujangmon. The boss would be extremly angry if we passed up this easy chance."  
"It iss ssso. I will wait."  
"Good work, Bhujangmon."  
"Thankssss."  
"Be patient, we'll put them to sleep- permanently- very soon. Kaci out." _The com at the other end shut out. The massive snake-like Digimon settled down, laughing to himself again, and waited for the others. Meanwhile, Kaci was running down a long hallway, Kitamon hot on her heels, until she got outside the hideout. Kesarinmon was standing there, shivering with inaction. He couldn't stand it._  
"Bhujangmon's spotted them, a few miles west of the desert. You still want action?"  
"I am always ready for battle."  
"Good, coz you're gonna get it. Follow me."_ Kaci called for her Flymon, mounted it with Kitamon and gave the order to move out. The group sped off into the black night, while their opponents slept, unaware of the attack soon to be sprung upon them...

The guys are in quite a bit of trouble now, but how are they going to get out of this one? Keep reading for more!


End file.
